Rotary cutter device for pipe cleaners



Jun 9,1953 w. s. LANG Em 2,641,010

ROTARY CUTTER DEVICE FOR PIPE CLEANERS Filed May l6, 1947 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN V EN TORS 8 Lung Bu ceR.Robinson June 9, 1953 w. s. LANG ETAL ROTARY CUTTER DEVICE FOR PIPE CLEANERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 16, 1947 INVENTORS nub V M E R. m m v 0 mm Patented June 9, 1953 ROTARY CUTTER DEVICE FOR PIPE CLEANERS Walter S. Lang, Pittsburgh, and Lawrence R. Robinson, Mount Lebanon, Pa., assignors to Pittsburgh Pipe Cleaner Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., a company of Pennsylvania Application May 16, 1947, Serial No. 748,496

7 Claims.

The invention relates, generally, to pipe cleaners, and more particularly to the cutting members for pipe cleaners.

The object of the invention is the provision of a pipe cleaner that will cut the deposit to be cleaned from a pipe into strips and then exert a lifting action to the sides of the strips to effectively remove the deposit.

It is also an object of the invention to provide cutting wheels for a pipe cleaner which are so shaped and mounted that in addition to cutting into the deposit on the inner surface of pipe they will exert a lifting action on the deposit at the trailing edge as they leave the deposit.

Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

The invention, accordingly, comprises the features of construction, combinations of elements, and arrangements of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the claims.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention, reference should be had to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in section showing features of the structure,

Fig. 2 is a view in section along the line IIII of Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a view in section along the line IV-IV of Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is a view in end elevation f the boss structure provided on the stem of the pipe cleaner,

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a section of a cleaning wheel showing details of its construction,

Fig. 6 is a view in end elevation showing modified cleaning wheels arranged a ound the hollow stem, and

Fig. 7 is a view partly in section and partly in elevation taken along a plane lying in the plane.

of a spring for carrying a cutting wheel showing details of the modified spindle for the cleaning wheels.

Referring now to the drawing and Fig. 1 in particular, the pipe cleaner comprises a hollow stem III which may be made from some suitable steel pipe. The size and length of the stem and the thickness Of the pipe wall will depend on the operation for which the pipe cleaner is to be utilized.

In this particular embodiment, the means for connecting the pipe cleaner to a propelling unit comprises a cap ll having an internal thread [2 for engaging an external thread. l3 provided on the end of the stem I0. The cap will preferably be made from some suitable material having strength commensurate with the stem l0.

As illustrated, the cap II is provided with a centrally disposed opening H for receiving an I-bolt 15. The diameter of the bolt I5 is smaller than the diameter of the opening 14, so that it may move freely. In order to connect the bolt I5 to the cap H, a washer is and nut I! are provided. As shown, the nut 11 is welded to the washer 16. The provision of the nut and washer combination welded to one another gives an adequate bearing surface on the cap I l to withstand heavy stresses in the propelling of the cleaner along a pipe.

As shown in Fig. 1, bosses 18 are welded to the stem [0 at two different locations indicated generally at 19 and 20. In this embodiment of the invention, the bosses at the different locations l9 and 20 are disposed on what may be described as a circumferential band of the stem I0 thereby so aligning them that they abut against an annular plate 2| that is Welded to the stem l0 and to the bosses 18. In this manner, a plurality of bosses evenly spaced circumferentially around the stem at locations l9 and 20 are firmly mounted to carry springs 22 that will be described hereinafter. Reference to Fig. 2 will reveal that the bosses l8 disposed on the different bands of the stem in are not in alignment along the stem but are staggered. As shown the upper face of each boss 18 is flat and disposed at an angle to the stem [0 to adapt it for carrying a spring to be described hereinafter.

The springs 22 may be made from spring steel plate having adequate strength. In this embodiment of the invention, the springs 22 are flat and have an opening at one end and the other end turned back on itself to provide a bearing 24 for a spindle 25, the function of which will be described hereinafter.

A spring 22 is mounted on each boss is by means of a screw bolt or lag screw 26. The annular plate 2| is notched at 21, best shown in Fig. 4, to receive the springs 22. The bosses l8 have threaded openings 28 for receiving the screw bolts 26. Thus when a spring 22 is mounted on the boss k8 by means of the screw bolt 26, it is held against lateral movement by the side walls defining the notches 21 in the annular plate 21.

Each spring 22 carries a pair of cutting wheels 29, as shown in Figs. 1. 2 and 3. The wheels of each pair are disposed on opposite sides of the spring 22 and rotatably disposed on the spindle 25 which rotates in the bearing 24. While a pair of wheels is disposed on each spring in this modification of the invention, for'some purposes it may be s-uflicient or even desirable to employ only one wheel per spring.

Referring now to Figs. 2 and 3, it will be seen that the cutting wheels 29 are evenly disposed around the stem ID. The cutting edges 30 of the wheels 29 of adjacent pairs are spaced about the same distance apart that the cutting edges 30 of each pair are spaced.

The spindle 25 for mounting the wheelsizc may be of any well known construction. :In thisembodiment of the invention, it is made to simulate a bolt with a hexagonal head 3| to facilitate the holding of it with a wrench. The end o'f'the-spindle 25 opposite the head 3| is threaded :to .receive a nut 32. This nut is also hexagonal in shape to facilitate the gripping of it with a wrench.

The cutting wheels 29 .are made dish-shaped as best shown in .Fig. 5. Each wheellhas a'bore 33 for receiving the spindle 25 and 'is countersunk to provide a depression Miter receiving washers 3'5 disposed under the head "3! and the nut 32. Provision of these washers facilitates the rotationof the cutting wheels 29.

The cutting wheels may be cast from some suit-able alloy which will retain .a reasonably sharp-cutting-edge =undermany conditions. However, it 'has been found preferable to machine the wheels 29 out of a high grade tool steel. When the toolsteelis carefully selected, a wheel that willhave-alonglife-and whichcan be. sharp- =5 eneda measonable-numbenof times may be provided. In some instances, it may be desirable to case harden the cutting wheel after .it has been machined.

In the al'llOdlfiCittlOh illustrated .in Fig. 6, the cleaningornutting wheels 36 are provided with i-inwardlyextending hubs 37. .Theremainder of the Wheel I is the .same-asin Fig.5.

The springer-38 tare widenedslightlyiat the i end :that is rolled back on itself to ,provide .ahearing. lhe ypurposeof widening the springs 38 .is to provide on :bothsides of each spring lbearing'f aces I for the hubs 121 of.the ivheels 33.

\In amounting a pair of wheels .35, they are .so disposed that they :spread .apart slightly .from =the-leading-edge to the trailingedgeifor a purpose that will be described -.hereinafter.

*Any suitable method -.may :be employed for mount the wheelsin-such manner. lnFig, athe spin-zlle S E a lse-the ends .isibent .forwardlyand slightly downwardly, .or generallyin. the direction in which the pipe cleaner isitotbemoved,through an angle of- 3-bestshown in. .7. As will be observed. I the -scentr-al-.- portion .of the l spindles .or the portions izr-the bearingsiiormedby rolling back the outer: andsoi' thcsprings 38.. are straight while the ends are. bent forward. The widening or flaring outwardly-of the-bearing ends of the springs 38 will be madetocorrespond' to the bend inthe spindlesli In some cases,.it may notbe necessaryto -flare the springslfiil outwardly but in such structuresihere' will 'notbeiproper bearing surfaces for the hubs of'thecutting wheels Stand the 'springs'will be' quickiy worn by the hubs.

'in mountingthebent spindles-- 3'9 any suitable method well khowrrin the art may-be employed. *A convenientmethod is to fitthe spindles into the "bearing'ends of the"sp'ring -beiorethey have been "completely rolled back K on' themse'lves :to form hearings. After the spi-ndles 89 main-position in the partly closed bearing, the ends of the springs may be pressed down to complete the bearings for the spindles. It is also feasible to bend the spindles 39 after they have been fitted into the bearings.

As shown inFig. 7, the wheelsareheld on the spindles by washers 35 and nuts i2. Since the spindles 355 are bent, nuts are provided on both ends.

In the operation oi a cleaner such as shown 1-1., 2 and 3, when it is desired to clean a pipe carrying a deposit, on the inside, the pipe cleaner is propelled through the pipe by some suitable propelling unit commonly used in the .art. The .cleanerselected by a particular job will .heof suchasize that it will, through the springs 22, exert an adequate biasing pressure on the cutting wheels 29 to'cut through the deposit. Thus as the cleaner moves longitudinally of the pipe, the deposit is out into strips.

As described hereinbefore, the cutting wheels are of a special shape. Reference to Fig. =5 will reveal that the wheels are dish-shaped. The curvatures of the inside and outside of the wheel may'vary a deal withoutdeparting ironrthe scope oi the invention.

When wheels are dish-shaped and toed-in lightly in the forward direction, they will tend to undercut the deposit-on the insideof-the pipe as it is cut into strips, and thus :exert ailifting asit at the trailing edgesof the uL-ing the wheels as t-oed in we tln'ough the rimsof a'pair'of inclined toward one another in the rd direction, that is.-the direction-in which the cleanerwill be'moved to clean the 'pipe.

the wheels are mounted on spindleathat bent forward, that is, in the direction in which the pipe cleaner is to move, through a small angle suchus 8,bc3t shown in Figsfiahd "'1, they will not only tend to undercut the .deposit on the-insiue of the pipe as it is cut into strips but they will exert asliftingactionlon:the strips'oi deposit. The operationwill be something lilzethat olthe discsol the well known disc harrow employed in agriculture. The dishshaped wheels'willcut'into the deposit'tending to undercut and at the same time the trailingeclge willezr rt a side thrusts-lithe stripcfdeposit ontherpipe.

Therefore, in the operation of a pipe cleaner "uni-t, such as described,:the deposit cn-theinside oi the pipe will be cut into strips and thestrips -:-ei-ther' partially or entirely torn loose from I the interior surface of the pipe. The completeness :ofithe cleaningioperation willldepend on thejob at lhand and :a study of :the number of .-cutting wheels and the spacing of the cutting wheelssrer quired' to 2 remove the particular :deposit.

lIl; aviil be readily appreciated that v in the construction of the cleaner any number of cutting -wheelsunay;be.:provlded and stag ered aroundithe tstem. [6. :Thus the .dcpositron the inside :01 the pipe may be cut into innumerable narrowstrips land:priedrloosetfromnthesurface. The narrower rnthewstripuithe; easier; it 1 is:.;for. the icuttin wheel to r. dislodge it: from the".interiorrsurfaceyofrthespine. ltwillralsorbe readily.-apnreciated that thesprinss 22 may be made of such a size, length and strength :to:meet. any-operatin conditionthatgmay'baenmounts-red.

i-lnrl-ocatingithe wheels 25,;it isgpreferablelto :laeepqthe abosses itvspaced ;a,;pre.det rmin d;dis- 011M368 iapart. i'W-hcn ;;Ia 'ge ;mmiber 19f ccutt-ing wheels-are desired in: order to-cut;the-depositjnto narrow strips, the number of locations SllOhJfiSi I9 and 20 on the stem can be increased to give any desired number of staggered cutting wheels 29.

Since certain changes may be made in the above device and different embodiments of the invention can be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

We claim as our invention:

1. In a pipe cleaner for removing deposits from the inner surface of pipes, in combination, a hollow stem, bosses disposed on the hollow stem, the upper faces of the bosses extending at an angle to the stem, springs mounted on the upper faces of the bosses, the springs also extending at a predetermined angle to the stem, and pairs of dish-shaped wheels disposed in teed-in relation on the springs to contact the deposit on the inner surface of the pipe under the biasing pressure of the springs, the dish-shaped wheels having cutting edges which cut the deposit on the inner surfaces of the pipe along lines substantially parallel to the axis of the stem as the cleaner is moved in a cleaning operation.

2. In a pipe cleaner for removing deposits from the inner surfaces of pipes, in combination, a plurality of rotatable cleaning cutters, a spindle for carrying the rotatable cleaning cutters at opposite ends thereof, the spindle being so disposed that the cleaning cutters carried on opposite ends are inclined outwardl from the leading edges to the trailing edges, springs for carrying the spindles and for biasing the cutters against deposits on the insides of pipes and means for carrying the springs disposed in a predetermined arrangement.

3. In a pipe cleaner for removing deposits from the inner surfaces of pipes, in combination, a plurality of dish-shaped cutting discs, spindles for carrying the cutting discs at opposite ends thereof, the spindles having their ends on which the discs are carried bent at an angle to the central portion forwardly in the direction of travel of the pipe cleaner a pair of toed-in discs carried by each spindle, spring members carrying the spindle, the springs serving to bias the discs against the deposit on the inside of a pipe and a stem for carrying the springs in a predetermined arrangement.

4. In a cleaner for removing deposits from the inside of pipes, in combination, a stem, bosses provided on the stem, a notched annular plate carried by the stem, the notches in the annular plate being in alignment with the bosses, springs carried by the bosses and disposed in the notches in the annular plate, the annular plate serving to keep the spring circumferentially spaced on the stem and dish-"shaped cutting wheels rotatably mounted on the springs, the dish-shaped cutting wheels being disposed in pairs and in planes inclined outwardly and rearwardly with respect to the longitudinal axis of the springs whereby as the dish-shaped cutting wheels cut into the deposit on the inside of a pipe, they out under it and eifect a lifting action at the trailing part of the wheel as it leaves the deposit, the cutting wheels performing the cutting and lifting operation upon movement of the stem longitudinally of the pipe.

5. In a cleaner for removing deposits from the inside of pipes, in combination, a stem, bosses provided on the stem, a notched annular plate carried by the stem, the notches in the annular plate being in alignment with the bosses, springs carried by the bosses and disposed in the notches in the annular plate, the annular plate serving to keep the springs spaced circumferentially on the stem, and dish-shaped cutting wheels rotatably mounted on the springs with alternate wheels facing in the opposite directions, the cutting wheels being toed-in to give a predetermined lifting action on the deposit as they cut into the deposit when the stem is moved longitudinally of the pipe.

6. In a cleaner for removing deposits from the inside of pipes, in combination, a stem, bosses provided on the stem and a notched annular plate carried by the stem, the notches being disposed in alignment with the bosses, springs extending at an angle to the stem carried by the bosses and disposed in the notches in the annular plate, the annular plate serving to keep the springs circumferentially spaced on the stem, bearings formed on the outer ends of the springs, the bearings having ends inclined at a predetermined angle to the middle line of the spring, axles with bent ends mounted in the bearings, dish-shaped cutting wheels rotatably mounted on the axles at an angle to the axis of the stem to accommodate them to the inclined ends of the bearings, the mounting of the wheels in toed-in and inclined arrangement serving to enable the dish-shaped cutting wheels to exert a lifting action on the deposit.

7. In a cleaner for removing deposits from the inside of pipes, in combination, a stem, spring members mounted on and extending at an angle to the stem, means for keeping the spring members spaced circumferentially on the stem, bearings formed in the springs, axles mounted in the bearings, each end of the bearings presenting a bearing face extending in a plane substantially parallel to the axis of the spring, axles disposed in the bearings, the ends of the axles being bent at an angle to the axis of the bearing, cutting wheels mounted on the portions of the axle bent at an angle to the axis of the bearing thereby disposing each pair of cutting wheels in a toed-in arrangement.

WALTER S. LANG. LAWRENCE R. ROBINSON.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 348,141 Rowell Aug. 24, 1886 572,359 Haight Dec. 1, 1896 597,421 Krueger Jan. 18, 1898 775,679 Nowotny Nov. 22, 1904 931,963 Ruggles Aug. 2d, 1909 1,028,075 Kendal et al May 28, 1912 1,193,005 Frank Aug. 1, 1916 1,278,453 Frank Sept. 10, 1918 1,758,132 Stockton May 13, 1930 2,173,606 Forster Sept. 19, 1939 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 76,821 Sweden Mar. 28, 1933 128,190 Germany Feb. 18, 1902 134,565 Germany Sept. l, 1902 750,748 France June 6, 1933 

